Lex Fridman Podcast
#432 – Kevin Spacey: Power, Controversy, Betrayal, Truth & Love in Film and Life
05 Jun 2024
Full Episode
The following is a conversation with Kevin Spacey, a two-time Oscar-winning actor who has starred in Seven, The Usual Suspects, American Beauty, and House of Cards. He is one of the greatest actors ever, creating haunting performances of characters who often embody the dark side of human nature.
Seven years ago, he was cut from House of Cards and canceled by Hollywood and the World when Anthony Rapp made an allegation that Kevin Spacey sexually abused him in 1986. Anthony Rapp then filed a civil lawsuit seeking $40 million. In this trial, and all civil and criminal trials that followed, Kevin was acquitted. He has never been found guilty nor liable in a court of law.
In this conversation, Kevin makes clear what he did and what he didn't do. I also encourage you to listen to Kevin's Dan Wooten and Alison Pearson interviews for additional details and responses to the allegations. As an aside, let me say that one of the principles I operate under for this podcast and in life is that I will talk with everyone, with empathy and with backbone.
For each guest, I hope to explore their life's work, life's story, and what and how they think, and do so honestly and fully. The good, the bad, and the ugly. The brilliance and the flaws. I won't whitewash their sins, but I won't reduce them to a worse possible caricature of their sins either.
The latter is what the mass hysteria of internet mobs too often does, often rushing to a final judgment before the facts are in. I will try to do better than that, to respect due process in service of the truth. And I hope to have the courage to always think independently and to speak honestly from the heart. even when the eyes of the outrage mob are on me.
Again, my goal is to understand human beings at their best and at their worst. And the hope is such understanding leads to more compassion and wisdom in the world. I will make mistakes. And when I do, I will work hard to improve. I love you all. And now a quick few second mention of each sponsor. Check them out in the description. It's the best way to support this podcast.
We've got ExpressVPN for privacy, 8sleep for naps, BetterHelp for mental health, Shopify for e-commerce, and AG1 for daily deliciousness. Choose wisely, my friends. Also, if you want to work with our amazing team or just want to get in touch with me, go to lexfriedman.com slash contact. And now, on to the full ad reads. As always, no ads in the middle.
I try to make these interesting, but if you must skip them, please do check out our sponsors. I enjoy their stuff. Maybe you will too. This episode is brought to you by ExpressVPN. I use it to protect my privacy on the internet. I used them for many, many years. There's something to be said for loyalty, even with software.
Now, part of that, of course, I say tongue-in-cheek because I don't have loyalty to software. But I do have an appreciation of really great design and software. And there's a kind of loyalty that builds up. I think people that use Apple products have that. When you have felt the love that was designed into the product. Like a lot of Apple products have. The early iPhones. All iPhones, really.
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